Three months after shoulder surgery, I took fresh progress photos today—

[domin8brix]

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

 

[sheilarae74]

Love it.

 

[FamousGoodkitty]

domin8brix said:

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.





View attachment 10122

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

View attachment 10123

There can be good stretches and bad stretches, progress and regress, forward motion and backward motion. A human body is capable of breaking down and malfunctioning, and that is simply part of the deal. Giving your body enough time to mend correctly was necessary. Had you not permitted adequate healing time, you would have felt even worse or more distressed, and then issues could have arisen that would have meant a much longer recovery window or ongoing "destruction" of the shoulder, leading to further bodily failures. There is genuinely no reason to be so hard on yourself. You allowed the healing time you required. At this point you can move ahead and gradually return to your previous level, confident that you gave your body what it needed to heal properly and avoid lingering problems. As people, we sometimes become far too impatient with our own bodies.

 

[Smiter]

domin8brix said:

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.





View attachment 10122

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

View attachment 10123

I'm drowning in hopelessness.. Same situation here, except my muscles were nothing close to yours. That said, I know a thing or two about what goes on internally, and out here in public, the only thing I'll add is this: you haven't landed back at square one... Closer to square 2.5

 

[MTSpace]

Last August I underwent a shoulder replacement. It certainly knocked me back, yet I turned the rehab and rebuilding period into a chance to practice (and keep practicing) patience and a stoic mindset, with gratitude. My energy goes toward strengthening my mind and spirit, while my body is rebuilt gradually. It’s paying off

Have faith in the process—better days are ahead.

 

[domin8brix]

Smiter said:

domin8brix said:

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.





View attachment 10122

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

View attachment 10123

I'm drowning in hopelessness.. Same situation here, except my muscles were nothing close to yours. That said, I know a thing or two about what goes on internally, and out here in public, the only thing I'll add is this: you haven't landed back at square one... Closer to square 2.5

1.75 is where we meet in the middle.

Every one of you is right. I was really hoping this setback wouldn't be so large.

I was aware the arms would go, or at least the 1. What I'd really hoped was that I could keep the mass down low. The shoulder still needs many months to heal, so it'll be many months before I can hack squat and go hard on the legs again.

 

[Smiter]

domin8brix said:

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.





View attachment 10122

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

View attachment 10123

fine, fine, I'll lift your spirits... the next round won't drag on for 3 years... closer to 4 months when you do it properly.

 

[Smiter]

domin8brix said:

Smiter said:

domin8brix said:

(just a heads-up — this is me venting and grumbling, I only want to get it off my chest)

I was actually pretty happy to get back into my Sunday rhythm of hitting the gym and then going for a walk/jog after lunch. Today I stayed in bed as long as I possibly could, since the only thing on my plate was the gym and I figured I'd enjoy the laziness while it lasted. Once I finished lifting, I snapped some updated check-in photos, because I wanted to get a clear picture of where I stand after these last three months of recovery.

Lots of regrets. Way too many regrets.





View attachment 10122

(In every comparison, the left side is before shoulder surgery, and the right side is today)

Since then, I've burned the last few hours going back and forth on whether to even share these — I'm furious beyond words to see that I flushed three fucking years of progress and growth down the drain during the three months I've been stuck doing whatever I could to hold things together without my normal training. I expected my arms to be wrecked from the shoulder and the bicep/lat/teres situation, but my quads have vanished, and what the hell is going on with all that fatty cellulite crap on my inner thighs and stomach that wasn't there before? Ugh.

Guess I'm starting over from scratch!

View attachment 10123

I'm drowning in hopelessness.. Same situation here, except my muscles were nothing close to yours. That said, I know a thing or two about what goes on internally, and out here in public, the only thing I'll add is this: you haven't landed back at square one... Closer to square 2.5

1.75 is where we meet in the middle.

Every one of you is right. I was really hoping this setback wouldn't be so large.

I was aware the arms would go, or at least the 1. What I'd really hoped was that I could keep the mass down low. The shoulder still needs many months to heal, so it'll be many months before I can hack squat and go hard on the legs again.

myonuclei are still there, so muscle memory remains